Remy Bond Keeps It Timeless

PAPER’s on a video call with Remy Bond, and we’re getting distracted. To be fair, there’s a lot to talk about — shroom trips, visual worlds, and a recent trip to Japan that involved missing a wedding and chasing a swan boat. (“We were getting kicked out of everywhere,” her sister Olivia tells me with a smile during our chat. “We hijacked this ramen shop.”) Eventually, we find our way back to the center, focusing on her project Backstage At The Tropicana — an ethereal, timeless, and glamorous ode to bygone eras, infused with modern lyricism, and delivered in a way only Ms. Bond could. With visuals that evoke a Hawaiian honeymoon — think tropical flowers, big bold blonde hair, and bright retro fits — each track reflects someone fully embracing life and experience. Talking with Bond, it’s clear she practices what she preaches… or in this case, sings.

This includes an impromptu trip to Paris that led to one of her biggest hits, the viral love-enbued slow-burner, “Summer Song.”

“I ended up getting to Paris and had a meeting with JB,” she says, explaining that she DMed Jean-Benoît Dunckel, one half of the French electronic duo Air, after being inspired by the score for Sofia Coppola’s Virgin Suicides. “I was looking at their tour schedule. I had to fly back, and we made Summer Song. That was another crazy experience. That’s how that song came about.”

So what is Backstage At The Tropicana about? Bond admits, “I don’t really know. That’s for the people to decide.” But she can point to which songs best capture her vision.

“Skintight Jeans" — we recorded it with Jules [Apollinaire], Billy Walsh, and Sky Devin,” she says of the sonically lush, '80s-inspired electro-indie track, where she purrs, “I wanna wear you like skin-tight jeans.” “We had just returned from some wild desert adventures. When you work with people that closely, it’s hard to set boundaries. But we love making music together, so why stop? We turned my living room into a giant bed — Liv’s mattress, all of us sprawled out, making music. That day we had a session with Billy. I was hesitant because Jules told me Billy thought I was a little crazy when we make music — which is true. I said, ‘You want weird? I’ll do weird.’ So we did the session on my mattress. At first, I didn’t take it seriously because I was annoyed. We were jamming on the floor, and I was like, ‘I hate electronic music.’ Then Jules started humming the chorus, and we all bounced off each other — Liv included. That’s how we created this really cool chorus. Billy used to be a ballerina, so he was dancing. And he has grills. He’s a ballerina with grills. I have my own coming, but I keep chipping my teeth, so I’m scared they won’t fit.”

Another track, “Orlando,” draws inspiration from the Florida tourist town. Bond echoes, “I wanna know what love is,” then whispers emphatically, “Oh my god, I love Orlando.” “We had our friend Toni over. She spends a lot of time in Orlando and talks about it constantly. I started secretly recording her. I’d only been once as a kid, but it sounded like a wonderful place. I wanted to romanticize that in the song. It’s also a little about boarding school,” she adds, reflecting on a “magical” New York City upbringing.

We also dive into “Moviestar,” a thrilling ABBA-style cinematic disco track, where Bond’s bell-like vocals yearn over “just another man in the universe.” “That was a crazy song. We made it in an hour in the desert. It was a beautiful moment with Jules and Liv,” she smiles.

Bond’s ability to inhabit different time periods comes naturally — something she’s been doing since childhood, picking up different personas at each school she attended. “I’ve never been very structured,” she says. “Things that turned me on were less cool than what others liked. In high school, I wanted to be popular. I went to four different schools, so that wasn’t always possible. I got to reinvent myself at each place and meet all kinds of people. I’ve always been restless, and that’s where the craziness comes from. If it were the ’60s, I wouldn’t be as into music or creativity. I get inspired by things I don’t see as much. Fans like that. They’re smarter than we give them credit for. They’re engaged, and I saw an opening to create something beautiful for them. Audiences were ready for it.”

Different personas aside, right now Bond is feeling like herself — free and inspired. “I understand how I want to be portrayed in my music,” she says. “Whether that’s the soundscape, the lyrics, or the chords. I’m impulsive with whatever hits my brain. You know what I mean?”

Photography: Kirt Barnett